The 5 C's Of A Serious Christian Disciple

PERSPECTIVE

January 10, 1991|by REV. YVES E. LAFONTANT

Long, long ago Socrates came up with this interesting statement: "An unexamined life is not worth living." Today this thought is just as valid and true, except that I would prefer to turn it around and make it say: "Make your life worthwhile by investing your best thoughts in the planning of it."

I would like to share with you the five C's that assure every serious Christian disciple of a rich and fulfilled life.

The first C stands for CHRIST. In our modern Christian culture, to be seriously interested in spiritual growth means to make Christ priority No. 1 in our lives. The Bible declares, "For me, to live is Christ." Where do we stand in this regard today? What is the place of the "Christ, the hope of glory" in our lives?

The second C is for CHOICE. Every moment of every day, we are faced with choices we must make. We can choose "yes" or "no" or "something in between" or "nothing." It is all up to us.

We can choose to love or not to love; we can choose to grow or not to grow; we can choose to remain in bondage or to be free; we can choose to start or not to start; we can choose to give and share or to refrain from giving and sharing. etc., etc. Yet, in the new year, the more we choose according to the best we know, the deeper our satisfaction and fulfillment.

The third C of the serious Christian disciple stands for COMMITMENT. It has been said that to be happy and fully alive, every person needs a worthy cause to which to dedicate time, energy and resources.

Experience has proved this to be abundantly true. To whom, to what are we committed? Deeply committed? What is it that causes us literally to lose ourselves in search of the greater dimension of ourselves, that part of ourselves which is still uncharted territory?

Are we truly committed to God first, God our Source, who gave us life and every blessing we have ever enjoyed? Are we committed to God first, God who alone can fill our New Year with all blessings, fill our hearts with infinite love, fill our life with increased health, joy and fulfillment?

Next, are we committed to ourselves, our first obligation second only to God? How about God's family of people and God's creation in general? Most people may not know that the shortest way to real fulfillment and peace is to love God through His family and His creation. Let us think about that.

The fourth C calls us to action. It is C for COMMENCE. Initiate action, begin right where we are. Doing the best we can with what we have is an important step to real fulfillment. When we learn that "We can do all things through Christ who gives us the strength;" when we learn to do our best and leave the rest to God, the "battle" is no longer ours, but the Lord's.

We simply need to bring our willingness and our sincere desire. We simply need to show to ourselves and to the Lord (God in us as Supreme Law) that we mean business by getting our feet wet. That gives God an opportunity to take charge and finish the work through us. It is always worth repeating that God will do no more for us than what he can do through us.

In the words of Goethe, "Are you in earnest, seize this very minute. What you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, magic in it. Only begin and the mind grows heated. Begin, and the work is half completed."

The fifth C brings us full circle to the first one, CHRIST. Yes, Christ in you, Christ in all of us, the hope of glory. Christ is at the beginning of our journey to peace and fulfillment. Christ is at the end of the journey. In between, there is first our personal choice (for all of us "if it is to be it is up to me").

In between, there is also our commitment to God, to ourselves and to God's service. Finally, in between, there is our responsibility to commence, initiate action.

Thus, we have traveled the length of the journey both in our soul and in corresponding outer experience, when we start with Christ and end in Christ. We walk in light, love, faith, wisdom and discipline as inspired by our own in-dwelling Christ. We make our life more than worthwhile by anchoring it in Christ year after year.